The Very Best
by StrawHat Dav
Summary: His dream had always been to be the best, like no one ever was. Paired with the starter he wanted least, Ash starts his journey and unravels the beauty and brutality of the world. He encounters pain and hardship, but also love and compassion, as he discovers what it truly takes to be the very best.
1. Chapter 1: Beginnings

**Author's Note: Hello! Dav here! I've been reading on this site for a long time and have decided to try my hand at writing my own story. This is my first story so please take it easy on me! I'd like to make it clear that this story is non-canon and in another universe, and therefore will have differences to the games and anime, which you will see upon reading. Although, I wrote it keeping the core elements of them in mind. ****Also note that there won't be any canon captures as well, and Ash is a lot less stupid... ****That's all I have to say. Enjoy!**

Bulbasaur.

A Bulbasaur. A goddamn Bulbasaur.

Ash scowled to himself as he stared at the grass type, its pokéball clenched in his hand.

"Is this really all that's left, professor?" he asked, gritting his teeth.

"I'm afraid so, Ash." Professor Oak responded, "I won't lie, I was surprised myself when the other kids showed up earlier to choose their starters." The time agreed upon had been 8AM, yet the other three trainers had shown up earlier to get first pick. By the time Ash had arrived, the other three were gone. He was the only one left out, like they planned it, it seemed.

The Bulbasaur looked down in sadness.

"Now, Ash, I know Bulbasaur doesn't have much of a good rep, especially amongst teenagers such as yourself, but it is still a powerful pokémon in its own right. It might not be as flashy or strong as a fully-evolved Charizard or Blastoise, but it is still powerful in the right hands!"

Ash said nothing.

For as long as he could remember he had dreamed of having a ferocious Charizard, or a steadfast Blastoise by his side. He had wanted so desperately to prove the other trainers wrong, to prove Gary wrong. Ash certainly wasn't stupid, but he struggled a lot with the theoretical aspect of being a trainer.

He had failed the Trainer's Exam twice. The theoretical portion of the test always murdered him, and despite his practical scores being near-perfect, all the other kids never let him forget about his failures.

And so, he studied. And studied. And studied. And he managed to pass the exam on his third and final chance just in time to receive his starter for his journey, like Gary and the others.

And here he stood with what every trainer agreed was the worst starter, the other trainers long gone.

He sighed, then looked down at the small pokémon. It was still staring down at the ground, but slowly began to meet his gaze. He saw sadness in the Bulbasaur's eyes, but also a spark of something different, something special, as if the Bulbasaur had something to prove. It was just like him.

It was then he realized how hypocritical he was being.

He knelt down.

"Hi Bulbasaur, I'm Ash… You're just like me, aren't you?... Everyone thinks you're weak.."

The Bulbasaur nodded.

He held his hand out. "Do you want to join me on my journey? To prove them wrong?"

"Saur!" The Bulbasaur responded, extending a vine out into Ash's hand.

Ash grinned. "It's a deal!" And they shook on it.

* * *

_Pokéballs... check… Money... check… Clothes…._

Ash went back and forth, checking he had all his things. His Bulbasaur followed close behind, curious.

"Do you have everything you need?" His mother's soft tone reverbated into his room.

"Yeah, I'm good!" He said, zipping up his backpack.

He raced down the stairs, his Bulbasaur clumsily doing the same. His mother stood by the door, her hands holding something behind her back. He pulled her into a hug.

"It's a dangerous world out there, Ash." She said. "I always wanted you to pick any profession but this one, because of how dangerous it is." She smiled. "But I see you've inherited my stubbornness."

Ash scratched his cheek. He remembered how she'd first reacted when told her he wanted to be a trainer; she'd been angry. But over time when he refused to relent on his dream, she showed her support.

"I want you to have this," she said, revealing from behind her back a crimson baseball cap, with a white half-circle on the front of it. "You'll need something to keep the sun out of you eyes!"

Ash put it on with a grin, covering his messy raven locks. "I love it, mom."

She smiled in return, then pet Bulbasaur. "Take care of him, okay." She said to the grass type.

Bulbasaur nodded gently. "Saur!"

"Alright, mom. I'm gonna head out now." Ash said, turning quickly, trying to keep her from seeing the tears that had begun flowing down his eyes.

"Be careful! And remember to call me!"

"I'm gonna make you proud mom!" He said as he brushed the tears off his eyes, not unnoticed by his Bulbasaur.

He opened the door and left the home he'd grown up in for sixteen years.

* * *

Ash walked down Route 1 slowly, taking in the sights. It was midday, the sun was shining and groups of Rattata were running back and forth in the grass. He wasn't interested in catching one, so he paid them no mind.

_First I should head to Viridian, then Pewter. If I'm quick I might be able to catch up with the others. _

Bulbasaur trudged behind him steadily. He knelt down, pet it, and then took out his pokédex. "Okay, Bulbasaur. So it looks like you know four moves: Vine Whip, Tackle, Sleep Powder, and Poison Powder. With enough training we'll be able to teach you better moves and widen your move pool!"

Bulbasaur yipped in agreement.

In general, most wild pokémon could use four moves, but as they are trained they can learn to remember more than four, with average trainers able to teach their pokémon six moves and elites able to teach them eight or more. This was one of the many reasons trained pokémon had such an edge over wild pokémon.

Sweat dripped from his brow as they continued to walk; they'd been at it for hours. He bitterly imagined Gary easily driving down the exact path in his convertible.

He brushed aside the thought and decided to stop under the shade of a large tree.

"Okay, Bulbasaur. Why don't we take a break here and get some training done?"

Bulbasaur nodded enthusiastically and moved toward him.

"Alright, first let me see your Vine Whip." He bent over and picked up a rock and chucked it into the air.

Almost immediately, twin vines shot out of the plant seed on its back, destroying the rock.

Ash grinned and picked up two rocks this time. He chucked both into the air, relatively close to each other. Bulbasaur grunted in concentration. Twin vines shot out again, each one striking a single rock, obliterating them completely.

"Alright, lets see how you handle this!"

He picked up two rocks again, but this time he threw them in different directions. The first vine made its mark, but the second vine was completely off-target. The frustration on Bulbasaur's face was clear to see.

"Don't worry Bulbasaur, this is why we're training," Ash reassured him.

Bulbasaur nodded, determined.

* * *

Time quickly passed as Ash and Bulbasaur worked on each of its moves, with Ash helping him improve them and developing strategies he could use with them. Before either of them knew it, it was evening.

Throughout the training session Ash had an odd feeling of paranoia, he felt as if someone, or _something_ was watching him, and he had felt this way for several hours.

He shrugged it off and sat down, watching his partner who was practicing using its Poison Powder in conjunction with its mobility. It would run in a straight line, use Poison Powder, then dodge to the side. It was a simple drill Ash taught him, but an effective one.

He called Bulbasaur over. "That's enough for now, Bulbasaur! Let's take a break!"

Bulbasaur ran back and sat down next to its trainer, breathing heavily. Ash poured water into a bowl and held it underneath Bulbasaur. It drank it greedily. Then, once it was finished, it laid on its side, leaning against its trainer.

Ash let out a sigh of happiness, absent-mindedly petting his starter.

Bulbasaur began twitching, as if it was sensing something nearby.

Suddenly, the bushes behind them began rustling and a gray, humanoid figure bolted toward Ash. Bulbasaur quickly reacted, using Vine Whip on the strange pokémon.

It ducked under, narrowly avoiding the deadly vines and continued running. Not into Ash, but past him.

Bulbasaur made to run after it.

"Stop!" Ash said, much to the confusion of his partner.

"It's running away. There's no point in trying to harm it. I don't think it was trying to harm us either."

Bulbasaur grunted, protesting.

"Don't worry about me, I'm fine," he said, "But what I am worried about was what that pokémon was doing in that bush. Was it spying on us? Why? How long was it there for?"

Bulbasaur shook his head, as if to say he was just as lost as his trainer.

"What was that pokémon, anyway?"

**Machop. The Superpower Pokémon. Machop is a master of multiple martial arts. It possesses immense strength, enough to decimate massive boulders with a single punch.**

_Well, that's interesting..._

* * *

A few days passed. Ash and Bulbasaur repeated the same training process each day, as they neared Viridian City. They got to test their mettle in actual battles a few times, battling wild Rattatas and Pidgeys that decided to attack them. Ash decided not to capture any of them, as they were of no interest to him. Ash was glad, though, that Bulbasaur was able to see the results of his training; it further motivated him.

There had been no sign of the elusive Machop they had encountered, but Ash had a feeling that that wasn't the last they'd be seeing of it.

Ash and his partner walked side by side down the dirt path, in a comfortable silence. They could see the large buildings of the city protruding over the trees. For a young man who grew up in a town as small as Pallet, seeing a city as massive and bustling as Viridian amazed him.

They entered the large city filled with people, pokémon, and vehicles and headed straight for the Pokémon Center.

Multiple Pokémon Centers were established in each major city for the purpose of healing pokémon and providing lodging and rations for trainers. Services were mostly free for trainers, but most Pokémon Centers charge extra for a stay longer than one night. Fortunately, Ash was only going to stay one night.

"Hello! Welcome to the Pokémon Center. What can I do for you?" Nurse Joy smiled at him.

Ash handed her his pokédex. "I was wondering if you could take a look at my, Bulbasaur? He doesn't have any severe injuries but we've been travelling for a few days and he must be tired. Also, I'd like to request a room for the night."

"Okay. First, here is your room key," she said, handing him a plastic card and returning his pokédex, "Now, can you return him to his pokéball and give it to me?"

Bulbasaur returned to its pokéball in a beam of red. Ash handed the pokéball to her.

"Excellent! This should only take a little bit since he is in relatively good condition. Please wait a moment." She handed the pokéball to her Chansey, who took it to the backroom.

Ash sat down on a chair nearby and fiddled with his pokédex.

After a few minutes, a tall purple-haired boy walked into the center, an injured pokémon in his arm. It was a Kirlia. The burn marks on its arms and scrapes across its body stood out to Ash.

"What happened to your Kirlia?" Nurse Joy asked him, concerned.

"We were out training. She couldn't keep up with my pokémon." he responded.

"What kind of training were you doing that would leave her so injured!?" she exclaimed.

"We have been doing combat training for weeks now. And so far this Kirlia has been completely _useless_."

"Now sir," she said. "I don't think that's a very nice way to talk about your own pokémon."

"I don't care what you think. This Kirlia is useless, and almost untrainable. If it wasn't such a rare pokémon, I would've gotten rid of it by now." He spoke with such coldheartedness that it shocked them.

Kirlia looked down in shame.

"Now… young man." Nurse Joy spoke in an angry tone. "You don't seem to be a very nice trainer. Am I going to have to report you to the league?"

The trainer snorted.

"Why don't we ask Kirlia what it thinks?" he said, scornfully.

The nurse gently laid a hand on Kirlia's head.

"Kirlia, are you happy with this young man as your trainer?" Nurse Joy asked in a concerned tone.

The Kirlia hesitated for a moment, then nodded its head resignedly.

"May I ask why? He seems to treat you very poorly."

"It's because it wants to be strong and I'm going to give it what it wants, no matter how many times I have to bring it back here." The arrogant trainer interjected rudely.

Kirlia nodded again.

Nurse Joy was stunned into silence.

"Well, there you have it. Clearly, this Kirlia wants to stay with me. There's nothing you can do" he smirked, returning his pokémon and placing it on the counter. "I'll be back for it later."

The boy began walking away, brushing slightly past Ash. They locked eyes. Cold, calculating black met warm, compassionate brown.

"Sir! I need your name for when you come back!" Nurse Joy shouted.

"It's Paul." He said, as he walked out the door.

* * *

The Pokémarts in Viridian City were massive, filled with anything a trainer could imagine—from TMs to healing supplies to pokéballs. Ash and his freshly-healed Bulbasaur explored the Pokémart across from the Pokémon Center with fascination. They walked through the TM section noting the extremely high number of them. Over the past couple of decades, scientists and engineers have been able to turn virtually every pokémon move into a Technical Machine, with a few rare and powerful moves as exceptions.

Ash looked enviously at the powerful moves on the shelves, but he knew that at the moment there was no way he could afford to pay for them. Another thing he did not have was pokémon he could teach them to, other than Bulbasaur, of course.

_I need to catch some more pokémon soon. My goal should be to build a team of maybe 10-15 pokémon. I remember Gary is probably going to catch way more than that, but I don't want to replace quality for quantity. I need a decent pool of pokémon I can rotate between._

Ash was interrupted from his thoughts by a slap on his shoulder. He looked up to see a short boy with red hair. The pokéballs strapped to his belt indicated he was a trainer.

"So," he said, "What are you doin' 'round here with that weakass Bulbasaur?" He smirked arrogantly.

"We're just here looking for supplies. We're not trying to start any trouble." Ash said, slightly annoyed. He tried to walk past him, but the other boy stood in his path.

"Sorry, chump, but that's not how we do things around here. You're a trainer. I'm a trainer. And we just locked eyes. That means we battle." He grinned predatorily.

Ash could tell from the look in his eyes that this guy expected little from him and probably just wanted easy money. After all, trainers always put money on the line during challenges, be it a gym battle or a battle between strangers. Usually, the higher the level of the battlers, the higher the money gained, which was why the career was so lucrative.

He returned Bulbasaur, who he could tell was getting agitated.

Although Ash knew he was being targeted, he felt a sense of determination, and he knew Bulbasaur was feeling it too. He knew he should have left immediately, but he badly wanted to win and to punish this guy for underestimating him.

And so, he stood his ground.

The other trainer smiled, recognizing this. "How many badges do you have?" he asked.

"Zero," Ash replied, to which the redhead grinned. "I just started my journey a few days ago. How about you?"

"About a month," he said. "I got two badges so far. I came here to challenge the gym leader, but he refuses to even respond to any trainer with less than seven badges."

Ash noted that information for later use. "What's your name?"

"Trent," he said. "You?"

"Ash Ketchum, from Pallet Town."

"Oh, a country boy, eh?" He smirked.

"Let's just battle," Ash responded. "Do you know of any battlefields nearby we can use?"

The arrogant boy nodded and led him out of the store to a small battlefield made for trainers nearby.

"It looks like you only have one pokémon, so it will be a one on one! Don't worry, I'll take it easy on you. We'll do the standard trainer bet of 200 pokédollars, agreed?!" Trent shouted from the other side of the field.

"Let's do this!" Ash shouted back.

Trent chuckled to himself. "This shouldn't be too hard at all, so I'll go with you!" He threw a pokéball onto the field and a large grey rhinoceros appeared. "Rhyhorn, come out for battle." The Rhyhorn roared and stomped down on the ground.

Ash gulped at the large size of the pokémon. Although he knew Bulbasaur had the type advantage, he knew that this battle would be difficult. Ash took a breath and found his center.

"Bulbasaur, I choose you!" Bulbasaur appeared in a flash of light. "Saur! Bulbasaur!" It yelled.

Wanting to make the first move, Ash quickly made a command. "Bulbasaur run forwards and use Razor Leaf!" Dozens of razor sharp leaves flew at the opposing Rhyhorn.

Trent smirked. "Rhyhorn, use Horn Attack." He said calmly. The large rhinoceros charged at Bulbasaur dodging what leaves it could, and tanking what it couldn't. It slammed into Bulbasaur with a thud, sending it flying back. Bulbasaur grunted in pain. "Bulbasaur!" Ash yelled. Rhyhorn was naturally strong; he knew Bulbasaur couldn't take many hits like that.

"Amateur mistake. Making the first move is good, but only when you can effectively use it to propel your lead." Trent laughed.

Ash forced himself to calm down and think rationally. He took a breath, then turned his cap backwards. He didn't know why he did this, but it gave him confidence. A strategy popped into his mind.

Bulbasaur quickly got back up and stared defiantly at the Rhyhorn. The trainers stood staring at each other, Trent waiting for Ash to make a move, but surprised when he refused to do so. Instead, Ash stood with a calm expression on his face, as if he was waiting for him to make the first move instead.

"Alright, Rhyhorn use Horn Attack again!" The Rhyhorn charged again straight at Bulbasaur.

"Bulbasaur stand your ground" Bulbasaur waited a moment. "Double Vine Whip, now!" Twin vines shot out of Bulbasaur's back and toward the charging Rhinoceros. It dodged the first one, by juking to the right, but was hit dead-on by the second vine, which had been aimed in a completely different direction than the first vine, predicting the dodge. It hit the ground grimacing in pain from the super-effective attack

"What!?" Trent yelled out in surprise. "Now Bulbasaur!" Ash yelled. " While it's down! Use Razor Leaf!" Rhyhorn grunted in pain as it was bombarded by multiple super-effective leaves.

"Rhyhorn get up!" Trent yelled. "Horn attack!" Rhyhorn charged at Bulbasaur, who rolled to the side and took only a glancing blow.

"Use Vine Whip!" Ash exclaimed.

Trunt yelled out. "Dodge!"

The Rhyhorn narrowly avoided both vines, but could not avoid the Tackle attack launch by the Bulbasaur immediately after. It grunted out in pain again.

"Well, well…. I certainly wasn't expecting that." Trent tried to keep his cool, despite how quickly the tides of the battle had turned against him. A bead of sweat rolled down his head. _Who the hell is this kid?_

"You're not bad for some kid from a shithole town." He derided, trying to egg Ash on.

Ash, however, was unaffected, the same focused expression on his face. "Bulbasaur charge and use Vine Whip!"

Trent stifled a laugh. _Charging at a Rhyhorn? He's just making the same mistake again... I was wrong… this kid's just some nobody._ "Rhyhorn take care of business. Dodge the vines and go for a Stomp attack!"

The Rhyhorn easily avoided the vines, knowing to be wary of them, and continued toward Bulbasaur.

However, this was what Ash wanted. "Now, Bulbasaur! Poison Powder roll!" Purple powder came out of its seed in a mist in front of it as it rolled away to the side. Rhyhorn unable to slow its charge fast enough ran straight into the mist and immediately fell down and began to cough and wheeze.

Trent gasped in shock, his Rhyhorn rolled on the ground fuming in agony.

"Your Rhyhorn is poisoned now. He's already worn out and with this status effect I'd easily be able to take it down with Vine Whip and Razor Leaf. You should give up, so it won't have to go through any more pain." Ash said calmly.

Trent grit his teeth in anger. "Shut up! Rhyhorn use Horn Attack!" Rhyhorn grunted in pain, but followed its master's order. It slowly charged toward Bulbasaur, its pain and fatigue obvious.

Ash sighed. "I'm sorry, Rhyhorn. Bulbasaur, end it." Bulbasaur charged at the injured Rhyhorn, slamming a Vine Whip on top of its head, blindsiding it. It then released a cyclone of sharp leaves at the Rhyhorn, slamming into it and knocking it down. It grunted in pain, and fell into unconsciousness.

Trent returned his pokémon with a scowl. He'd underestimated the kid severely.

_He made mistakes at the beginning… but learned from them immediately throughout the battle. It's like he's some fucking battle prodigy._

"Well, I believe you owe me those 200 pokédollars." Ash grinned, petting his excited, but exhausted Bulbasaur.

Trent grew a grin of his own. "Who said anything about paying anyone anything?"

Ash responded, confused. "But you said—"

"Who cares what I said, you think anyone can see us from here?" Trent interrupted, smirking.

They had started battling before it was really dark, but now they were right in the middle of the night. There'd be no passersby to witness anything.

Ash cursed his stupidity.

_I knew it was a trap from the start! Yet still I walked into it like an idiot!_

"I underestimated you, so I used my weakest pokémon against you. But I still have more pokémon, while all you have left is an injured Bulbasaur." Trent laughed, throwing out two pokéballs. A large, blue, crocodile appeared as well as a large brown, bipedal bear. Both roared menacingly.

Bulbasaur stood in front of Ash, shakily. It roared back at the Croconaw and Ursaring. Ash cursed his own stupidity again. There was no way he could win this battle. Defeat and utter hopelessness shone in his eyes.

Noticing this, Trent chuckled. "Give me all your money, everything. And return Bulbasaur and hand him to me. I think I'll get a good price for a Bulbasaur this strong." He smirked maliciously.

"No way in hell!" Ash yelled. "You'd have to kill me first!"

"If you say so." Trent smirked again. "Kill him. But leave the Bulbasaur alive." He motioned to his pokémon and they nodded.

Croconaw and Ursaring approached slowly. Bulbasaur's vines lash out violently against them, but they just shrugged off the attacks of the fatigued pokémon. They were just about to reach it when a voice spoke out from the shadows.

"How Pathetic." It said. "Preying on a weak, newbie trainer."

"Who said that?! Where are you?" Trent shouted.

"Here." The owner of the voice appeared from the shadows. It was Paul.

"I don't care who you are, but if you don't get the hell out of my way you'll regret it!" Trent yelled, furious. His pokémon approached Paul threateningly.

The purple-haired trainer laughed, genuinely amused. "I seriously don't recommend continuing your current course of action." He tapped on the button of a pokéball on his belt and a massive pokémon appeared by his side. "Rhyperior!" It screeched, loud enough to make Ash's ears hurt.

It pounded its rocky chest with its arm.

Trent gulped. His two pokémon trembled in fear beside him. Rhyperior were incredibly powerful pokémon, only the best of trainers could control. And as it looked menacingly at him, he realized the tables had turned on him.

Rhyperior took a step forward.

"Look, I'm sorry! Call your pokémon off and I'll get out of your hair."

"Okay, but first I think you owe the noob here some money for his win." Paul said smirking.

"Whatever!" he said angrily, throwing a pile of cash onto the ground. He then returned his pokémon and sprinted away, disappearing into the darkness.

Ash picked up the money and let out a breath he hadn't realized he'd been holding. He looked up at Paul. "Thank you, for saving me there."

Paul grunted.

Figuring that that was his way of saying "You're welcome." Ash continued. "How come you didn't capture him though. Couldn't you have brought him to the authorities? Clearly he's a poacher of some sort?"

"From the situation you were in," Paul explained, "there was no hard evidence against him; it would have just been a He Said/She Said situation. That is, unless I had let you kill him, of course. But you wouldn't want that now, would you?"

"Fair point" Ash conceded. "We should head back to the Pokémon Center."

Paul nodded and they made their way back. "I'm Ash by the way." Paul grunted in response. "And I know your name is Paul. I saw you in the Pokémon Center earlier, with the Kirlia."

"I disagree with the way you treat and train your pokémon. I think it's stupid and wrong." Ash continued.

Paul looked at him with a mix of confusion and surprisal. "Is this usually how you treat the people who save your life?"

"Don't get me wrong, I truly am grateful to you. But I really disagree with the way you treat your pokémon. I saw you in the Pokémon Center. You seem to only care about rare, powerful pokémon, but I think that any pokémon can be strong if it worked hard enough, no matter how weak it is at the start."

Paul snorted. "You really are a fool. Weak pokémon are a waste of time, they have no potential. Rare pokémon are the ones with the potential to be the best. Look at every Elite and Champion level trainer; all their pokémon are rare, and were naturally powerful from the start!"

"That's not true at all! I know rare pokémon are powerful, but that just means they have a head start; any pokémon can grow in strength. And just because a pokémon is weak doesn't mean it's useless and should be discarded! And another thing! You treat your pokémon with such coldness. Pokémon should be treated with kindness and compassion, not coldness and disrespect!" Ash's eyes blazed with passion.

Paul's eyes were the same. "Kindness and compassion will get you nowhere. Trust me kid I learned it the hard way. It's ruthlessness that will let you make it far. If this is the way you think you should give up now!" He shouted coldly.

They both looked at each other angrily. They did not only clash verbally, but ideologically, philosophically.

They locked eyes for a moment, then both looked away, embarrassed, realizing how heated they both had gotten. "Look kid, I'm an Ace level trainer. I've been doing this for over a year and a half now, while you've been a trainer for only a few days. Come talk to me when you have actual experience."

They reached the Pokémon center and entered. "Fine!" Ash responded. "Give me a year then. We'll battle at the Indigo Conference, and I'll defeat you and show you how wrong you are!"

Paul wanted to laugh at the boy, but couldn't. The challenge would've been ridiculous if anyone else had said it; there was no way a person could grow that much in a year. But deep down he knew that Ash was special; he'd seen the end of his battle with Trent. He knew he had to take Ash seriously, and he did.

"I'll see you on the battlefield, then." Paul responded, locking eyes with Ash. They nodded to each other and Paul left to his room.

Ash approached a tired-looking Nurse Joy. "Can you help heal my Bulbasaur? He was injured in a… battle." The nurse nodded and took his pokéball.

Ash sat in the same seat he had sat in before and thought about everything that just happened.

_Mom was right. It really is dangerous out there, I would've lost my life if not for Paul… I need to catch more pokémon. I need a team that can help protect me and each other. And about mom… I should probably call her._

"Nurse Joy, call me when you're finished please."

Ash went down the hall to the video phones to call his mother. Despite it being late he knew she would want to hear from him. He decided to leave out the part where he almost died when talking to her though…

**1 pokédollar=1 dollar USD in case anyone was wondering…**

**I hope you enjoyed the first chapter! I was inspired to write this story by other great works on this website, such as "Challenger" by darkfire1220 and "Legend" by The BlackStaff and NightMarE. I'm sure most of you have already heard of them because they're really popular, but if you haven't, I highly recommend checking them out. Other than that, please R&R and I'll see you next time!**


	2. Chapter 2: The Forest

**AN: Hey guys! I know it's been a while, but due to certain circumstances I have finally found the time to update. By the time I post this chapter, I will already have the chapter following this one completed and only in need of editing. I will try my best to update as consistently as possible from now on. Please enjoy!**

* * *

A branch cracked as Ash and his partner walked down the littered path of Route 2. Twigs, branches, and even felled trees were scattered around the area haphazardly. Ash and his Bulbasaur avoided them easily enough, but they were still a nuisance that they had to pay attention to. Their presence was quite odd, but in the moment Ash was too preoccupied to care.

It was noontime, yet Ash couldn't help but think back to what happened the night before. Not what had happened with Trent, but with his mother.

He had ended up telling her everything that had happened; he just couldn't lie to her.

He had trouble sleeping that night after telling her, remembering the utter fear and shock he had seen in her eyes. Growing up he had always wanted to be a trainer; he'd always thought that it would be a fun, happy experience.

But last night had been the first time he'd ever questioned his dream.

It wasn't the fact that he had almost died. That didn't dissuade him at all. What had broken his heart was the look on his mother's face as she cried when he told her of the danger he had been through, of how he had almost lost his life. Could he keep on doing this to her everyday? Everytime he was in serious danger? The life of a trainer was a difficult one. And if he died, ultimately, he wouldn't be the one affected. It's the people he left behind, his mother, who would suffer, because they'd have to keep on living without him.

Ash sighed to himself and felt something rubbing against his back. It was Bulbasaur's vine, trying to comfort him. He faked a smile, but on the inside he was burning.

His partner noticed easily. It growled gently, letting him know it was there for him.

Ash smiled again, this time genuinely, and rubbed Bulbasaur at the top of its head, the spot he knew it loved to be pet. It sighed in appreciation.

_I can't keep worrying mom like this. The first thing I need to do is catch more pokémon, at least that way I'd be safer._

They continued down the route, and as they neared the dangerous Viridian Forest, they were shocked by the increasing amounts of felled trees. What they were approaching was a forest, yet some of it had been killed. Large piles of logs were littered around the area.

Ash steeled himself as they approached the forest. It was about a two-day trek, but usually an incredibly dangerous one, with high amounts of Bug pokémon that will attack on sight. Furthermore, the amount of felled trees was a definite concern.

As they entered, Ash couldn't help but notice more trees that had been knocked down.

Bulbasaur looked extremely agitated. Being a grass type, it was more connected to nature; seeing such a large amount of dead trees must have crushed it.

Ash gently rubbed its head as they moved deeper into the forest.

He decided to try to distract it from its discomfort. "Oh, Bulbasaur! I forgot to mention. I think it's about time you learned some new moves."

Bulbasaur jumped in excitement.

"Okay, so I think Leech Seed would be an effective move for you to learn. It's good for both impairing the enemy pokémon and healing yourself. Plus, it's also already a move you learn in nature, so you should be able to nail it easily! "

Bulbasaur nodded as Ash explained the theory of the move, and as they travelled, they began working on it. After a few hours into their trek, it already knew the basics of the move and could perform it. After all, Leech Seed was a move it learned naturally, not a TM, so it learned it relatively easily. Before they started, it had already begun developing the move, as it does in nature, which is a very slow process. However, Ash, already knowing the basics of it, helped expedite the process.

This was another reason why trained pokémon were often much more powerful than wild ones.

Ash looked up and saw that it was dark. He decided to make camp underneath a thick tree, and started a fire.

"Why don't we make camp here? Then we can work on some more combos."

Bulbasaur nodded in support.

* * *

The morning sun glistened as Ash and Bulbasaur continued their trek through the forest. They had woken up and worked on combination attacks for a few hours and then decided to continue their journey.

_This is definitely weird… We've been here for quite a while and still haven't been attacked by a single Bug pokémon. We haven't even seen one!_

Ash stumbled, almost tripping on one of the fallen logs. He looked at the log, realizing something.

_Whoever, or whatever, did this to the trees must have been interested in all the Bug pokémon. No wonder we haven't encountered any. They all must have fled somewhere after many of them had lost their homes, the trees._

After a while, however, the forest began to look more like an actual forest. Live trees were everywhere and the amount of felled ones began to decrease. There were still many logs littered on the ground, but the amount was significantly smaller than the number of logs on the outside. It was very odd, as if someone had deliberately chosen to chop down certain parts of the forest.

Ash could tell he had made it to the center, the heart of the forest by his surroundings.

The heart of the forest was much greener than the outskirts and filled with much more foliage. There were almost no logs on the ground at this point, which Ash took to be a good sign. Ash could even hear a few Bug pokémon rustling in the trees above. He'd never thought he'd see that as a good thing, but considering the circumstances, he did.

As they continued walking through the foliage, they suddenly heard loud yelling.

"Heracross! Brick Break!" They heard a pokémon grunt in effort before hearing a large smack, followed by the same pokémon screeching in pain.

"No Heracross! Get up!"

Ash and Bulbasaur made it past the treeline and finally saw what the commotion was. They saw a strange boy in a samurai costume, a Heracross knocked down flat on its back, and a Machop standing over it and grinning. They recognized the Machop immediately.

The Heracross got up quickly, but it's fatigue was obvious. The Machop looked like it wasn't even breaking a sweat.

"Horn Attack!" He yelled.

Heracross charged straight at its opponent, thrusting its large horn at it multiple times. The Machop avoided each thrust easily, with a grin on its face.

It was clearly just toying with the Heracross.

"Use Brick Break!"

Heracross's arms glowed a fluorescent white as it rocketed towards the Machop, that blocked it with its arm, still grinning.

"Keep using Brick Break! Wear down its defense!"

Heracross threw chop after chop at the Machop. The gray fighter blocked, dodged, and deflected every single strike with a focused expression on its face. It then lunged forward with a Karate Chop, striking the Heracross right across its chest. It felt down in pain and fainted.

"Shit!" The trainer yelled. The Machop cracked his knuckles menacingly.

He panicked, knowing there was no way he could beat this pokémon. He fumbled for the pokéball that held his last pokémon, but stopped, noticing that the Machop was no longer paying attention to him, but something behind him. He turned around and noticed the signature raven black locks and dark crimson cap of Ash Ketchum.

"You there! Can I get a little help here? I only have one other pokémon left and there's no way I can take this Machop down. And I don't wanna know what this Machop's gonna do to me if my Pokémon are all fainted! " The samurai ran past Ash, hiding behind a tree.

Ash nodded, running toward the gray fighter. "Sure thing!" There was only one thought in his head at that moment.

_I need this pokémon on my team._

He didn't even consider how difficult it would be to capture such an unusually powerful pokémon.

"Bulbasaur I choose you!" Ash exclaimed as his Bulbasaur sprinted in front of him, facing the Machop. The fighting-type grinned at Ash and made a "come here" motion with his hand. Clearly, it recognised them as well.

"Bulbasaur, use Razor Leaf!"

Dozens of razor sharp leaves soared through the air at breakneck speeds towards the Machop. It, however, was faster. It ducked and dodged almost every leaf, only taking a few direct hits.

"What were you doing four days ago, on Route 1? Why were you spying on us?"

It ignored him and charged towards Bulbasaur, its fist raised in the form of a Karate Chop move.

Ash was about to command his Bulbasaur to charge straight ahead and use its Tackle attack, but his gut suddenly screamed at him not to.

"Bulbasaur, use Sleep Powder in front of you! Distance yourself from it!"

Bulbasaur released a dark misty powder in front of it before running backwards. The Machop growled, forced to stop itself before it ran headfirst into the powder in the air. It angrily smashed its attack into a nearby boulder, absolutely decimating it.

Ash sighed to himself in relief.

_Good thing I decided not to rush straight in…_

The Machop charged toward Bulbasaur again. This time, it was too close for Bulbasaur to be able to pull off a Sleep or Poison Powder.

"Bulbasaur, prepare yourself for its Karate Chop! And use Vine Whip when you get an opening!"

It was at this moment Ash realized he had gotten too cocky. As the Machop approached Bulbasaur, it didn't go for an attack with its arm, but with something Ash had completely overlooked—its leg. Bulbasaur was completely swept off its feet by the devastating Low Kick attack. But in its determination it used its Vine Whip attack while falling, managing to lash the Machop with a powerful blow.

Bulbasaur hit the ground rolling and got up quickly. The Machop was quick to respond, its hand flying toward Bulbasaur in another Karate Chop. Bulbasaur rolled over again, taking only a minor blow. It endured the pain, and connected a Tackle attack on the Machop, knocking it back and gaining some distance.

Ash couldn't help but smile to himself, this was where he was truly in his element. Even during his battle with Trent he was having fun, until his life had been threatened of course. However, he could tell Bulbasaur was getting exhausted. He needed to end things quickly.

"Bulbasaur, charge and use Vine Whip around its arm!" Bulbasaur managed to wrap a vine around Machop's left arm. The Machop grabbed it like a rope and grinned. It now could land a direct hit on Bulbasaur.

However, Ash planned for this. It may have been easier for Machop to attack Bulbasaur, but the opposite was also true.

"Bulbasaur! Leech Seed into Tackle!"

Machop's right arm came crashing down like a hammer aimed straight at Bulbasaur, but before it could land it was surrounded by a thin branch that had sprouted from Leech Seed and restrained its arm like a net, sapping its energy. Then, Bulbasaur retracted its vine wrapped around the Machop's left arm and hit with a Tackle attack, knocking it down and away. It groaned in pain as its energy continued to be sapped from its body.

Conversely, Bulbasaur became visibly less tired and injured as it absorbed the Machop's energy with Leech Seed.

Ash readied a pokéball, expecting the Machop to stay down. But to his surprise, it stood up on shaky legs and growled at him.

Ash grinned, he respected Machop's tenacity. He knew that while it was standing on its own two feet it would fight back.

But instead of facing Ash, the Machop looked desperately at the tree behind it, waving its arms at Ash, trying to signal something to him. It chopped a small chunk out of the trunk, marking it.

Ash, too engrossed in the battle, didn't notice.

"Bulbasaur, Sleep Powder!"

A dark, powdery mist fell upon the Machop, who was too injured to avoid it. It fell down with a thud, asleep.

Ash threw a pokéball at the Machop. It disappeared into the pokéball and shook three times, signifying a capture.

Ash grinned, raising an arm triumphantly. Bulbasaur did the same, mimicking its partner, raising a vine in the air.

Their celebration was short-lived, however. Loud buzzing noises resounded through the forest as a swarm of Beedrill descended upon them, probably aggravated by the battle.

"Shit!" Ash yelled. As he and Bulbasaur ran to the protection of the trees. "Use Razor Leaf!"

The leaves managed to hinder the swarm of Beedrill, but they still approached quickly. Then, to Ash's surprise, the other trainer sent out a pokémon. He'd expected him to run away like a coward, much like what he did earlier with the Machop. But instead he chose to help Ash.

"Skorupi, I need you!" "

A purple scorpion with a large pincer on its tail appeared appeared.

"Use Pin Missile!"

The Skorupi nodded and let out a stream of missiles into the air. The combined efforts of Razor Leaf and Pin Missile was enough to hold the Beedrills slightly back.

"Follow me!" The trainer yelled.

Ash nodded, having no other options available to him.

The two trainers ran, their pokémon beside them, and an angry swarm of venomous Bug pokémon behind them.

In the hollow of the tree Machop had marked, two dark, oddly-colored pokeballs shook as the trainers ran past it.

* * *

"Are you sure we'll be safe here?" Ash said, his face illuminated by the crackling fire. His arms were covered in minor cuts and scrapes, but otherwise he was fine.

They had taken shelter in a small cave near a river. The sound of water crashing against rock nearby was constant.

"Yeah, I haven't left this forest for days. I've been camping around this area and I know the Bugs hate it here because of all the running water."

"Why would you willingly stay in a place like this?" Ash asked, perplexed. He began disinfecting and bandaging his wounds.

"My dream is to be a Bug-type Master! Where better to train than a forest such as this one?!"

Ash, nodded. It was understandable, but also… _insane_. However, Ash had literally almost been killed before he'd even been a trainer for a week, and he still wanted to continue being a trainer. He knew he was insane as well, in his own way.

"Do you know what's been happening around here? It looks like someone's been chopping down trees everywhere." Ash said.

"Yeah, it's been pretty odd. I've heard people talking about figures in all black taking down trees. Apparently they've been doing it in the middle of the night. Hundreds of trees have been taken down; the Viridian Police have been notified but for some reason they can't send anyone right now. "

Ash nodded. It was all the more reason for them to get as far away from the forest as soon as possible.

"Is your name actually Samurai by the way? And what's up with the samurai get-up?" They had introduced themselves to each other earlier, and Ash had been confused by the boy's odd name from the start.

"It is not. It is a name I chose for myself, a name I want to be respected! I choose to wear the armor of a Samurai because I want to be respected like one." He said proudly.

"But why all this? Why do you need to change yourself at all?" Ash asked, unaware of the look of pain that flashed in the other boy's eyes.

"Where I'm from, the old me was treated horribly," he frowned, "But now I have decided to take a new name, one that will be respected!" He finished, smiling.

Ash knew he was asking a charged question but he asked it anyway.

"Were you bullied?"

The other boy remained silent, but the look on the samurai's eyes was enough to tell the answer to that.

Ash continued. "I only asked because I know what it's like too. To be looked down on and left out. I was never bullied that badly, never physically for the most part. But it still hurt, knowing everyone expected little of me. That's why I'm here now, and that's why it is my dream to be the very best!" He finished.

Samurai was shocked by Ash's openness, but also by the passion he heard in his voice. It inspired him to respond. "I never thought I'd meet a person like me in that regard." He grinned. "But it looks like we'll be competing against each other at the top!" He held up his fist, and Ash bumped it in return, grinning as well.

They both sat down on opposite sides of the caves.

Ash released Bulbasaur and Machop, deciding it was a good time to tend to their wounds. He applied a Potion to Machop first, who was still sleeping. Bulbasaur decided to do the same, drifting off quickly.

While still applying the potion, he looked up at Samurai.

"What kinds of things have you been doing in this forest?" Ash asked him.

"Well I've been exploring it and catching whatever Bug pokémon interests me. That's how I caught Heracross actually. I also picked the past couple of days to camp here because I heard the Pallet Town Trainers were starting their journeys around this time, and I wanted to test my mettle against them!"

"Wait a minute!" Ash exclaimed. "I'm one of them. I'm from Pallet and I started my journey a few days ago."

Ash was a bit surprised at being well-known, after all he came from a small town in the countryside. But the small town he lived in also happened to be the home of former champion and famous researcher Professor Oak…

Samurai's mouth gaped in shock, then morphed into a grin. "Well, I'm not surprised! You defeated that Machop easily! You must have learned a lot from the Legendary Professor Oak!"

"Well, actually I didn't really study that much under him," Ash responded, still spraying Machop's injuries. "Although he was my sponsor, he mainly focused on training his grandson Gary." Ash frowned, bitterly. He knew he couldn't blame the old professor, though.

"Oh, well that's a shame." Samurai said. "Anyway I battled Gary just two days ago. I lost pretty horribly though." He chuckled.

"Oh! Was anyone with him?" Ash asked.

"There was this girl who held his hand. She had brown hair and a white hat. She was kind-of pretty," he said with a sheepish expression.

_Leaf…_

Immediately Ash's mood soured.

"Did you battle her too?" Ash asked through gritted teeth. He began spraying Bulbasaur slightly and, since it wasn't as injured, he finished quickly.

"No, just Gary! By the time we were finished I had no more pokémon that could battle," Samurai said.

Sensing the mood, he tried to change the subject. "You won't believe how I found that Machop though! So I was walk—"

"That's enough," Ash cut him off, rudely.

"I'm sorry, was it something I said?" Samurai spoke, worried.

"No, it's just Gary used to be one of my best friends before he started looking down on me… and that girl… that girl was really important to me too." Ash spoke in a whisper.

"I'm really sorry to hear that."

"It's alright. I'm just going to go to bed." Ash plopped down on his sleeping bag, staring at the ceiling.

Samurai did the same, wondering what exactly had happened to Ash. He fell asleep with that in mind.

Ash fell asleep thinking about broken promises and a brown-haired girl.

* * *

(Meanwhile…)

The moon shined down on three figures, trudging through Viridian Forest. Two of them were men dressed in all black, the other a Houndour walking in the lead.

"We're lucky Houndour managed to pick up a scent!" The tall figure said to the shorter one.

"Shut up!" The shorter figure yelled. "It's your fault we're in this mess in the first place! We spent days knocking down all those trees only for you to fuck it up by chasing after a goddamn Machop!"

"Look, I'm sorry, okay! Let's just get this done before the boss finds out."

It was at that moment that his communicator rang…

"It's the boss! What do we do?" The tall figure exclaimed, panicked.

"We have to answer! It's better we tell him the truth than lie. You know what he does to liars."

They answered the communicator.

"Where the hell are you two!?" A deep, menacing voice came out of the device.

"Sir, we can explain!" The shorter figure exclaimed, running damage control. "We managed to find the pokémon you wanted after taking down all those trees… but we ran into a bit of a complication. My partner here will explain." He said, completely throwing the tall figure under the bus.

The taller figure spoke.

"Well you see, sir. It happened after we captured those rare pokémon you wanted with the untraceable pokéballs you gave us. We were heading from Viridian Forest towards Viridian City, when I heard something in a bush behind us. Something was spying on us. Then suddenly, a Machop leapt out of the bush and ran straight past me back towards the forest. And I was angry y'know 'cause that little shit scared me. So I chased after it to teach it a lesson."

"And then what happened?" The "boss" sounded slightly amused.

"The Machop was incredibly powerful, like ridiculously so! It knocked us out before we could even throw out a pokémon. By the time we woke up it was gone, and it had taken the Bug pokémon with it! But don't worry boss, my Houndour already picked up the Machop's scent. And we're chasing it right now. We'll get you back your pokémon in no time, and we'll throw in that Machop too, to make up for it being late."

There was dead silence as the two men waited anxiously for a response.

"You have 24 hours." The communicator clicked as the call ended.

The two men sighed in relief.

* * *

Machop's yell woke up everyone inside the cave. It bolted out the cave entrance and began running towards the trees, covering its eyes from the morning sunlight.

It had always been a curious pokémon, spying on humans whenever it got the chance. Growing up it had been advised against doing so, but it was happy it never listened. After all, it had spied on two suspicious-looking men, and as a result, managed to free two innocent young pokémon and take them into the Viridian Forest for protection.

It had been protecting the young pokémon when it had fought against a young trainer dressed as a Samurai. However, it had gotten carried away after another, more skilled, trainer challenged it. It was arrogant, not believing it could be taken down and captured. But the trainer had defeated it. It had left the two pokémon it had meant to save all alone.

The Machop stopped, unaware of his location. It looked around but had no idea where it was. It saw the same thing in every direction—trees.

"Machop!" Ash yelled, finally catching up to it. Bulbasaur was hot on his heels. "What's wrong!?"

Machop tried to explain to Ash using large gestures, but Ash couldn't understand it.

"I think I know," yelled Samurai, who had caught up as well. "It was what I was trying to tell you yesterday. You see, when I met that Machop, I was just minding my own business trying to walk through the forest. Then Machop appeared and wouldn't let me pass. I thought it was because it was trying to protect its territory, but I realize now that it must be something else, right Machop?"

The Machop nodded multiple times.

"Do you want me to take you back to where Ash captured you?"

It nodded, this time even faster.

After a solid half-hour of running, they made it back to the same clearing. Machop ran up to the marked tree and climbed it. At the very top, it reached inside a hole and pulled out two odd-looking pokéballs.

It leaped down and handed them to Ash, who inspected them.

_These pokéballs look really weird. I remember! I studied this for the Trainer's Exam. These are untraceable pokéballs, which are used to capture pokémon without the League's knowledge. That means whoever caught these pokémon have to be poachers of some sort!_

Suddenly, a large torrent of flame struck Machop's back, knocking it down as it yelled in pain. Another blast came flying at it, but it was pulled away by a pair of vines. Machop nodded to Bulbasaur in thanks, then faced the enemy lying ahead.

Three figures emerged from the trees. Two men dressed in black, and a Houndour.

"Hand over those pokéballs, and that Machop." The shorter one said. "Trust me kiddoes, you don't want to mess with us."

"Not gonna happen!" Ash yelled, putting the pokéballs in his pocket. Bulbasaur and Machop stood in front of him defensively. Ash grinned as Samurai stood beside him, letting out his pokémon as well.

"Looks like we're gonna have to do this the hard way," the shorter grunt said, releasing two pokémon. The taller figure beside him released one as well.

A medium-sized Nidorino appeared in front of the short grunt, followed by a large Raticate. A Flaaffy appeared and stood beside the tall grunt's Houndour. All four pokémon looked angry, abnormally so.

Ash noticed this and reminded himself to be cautious of their aggressiveness. He scanned the pokémon quickly.

_That Houndour is definitely going to be too big of a problem for Samurai's pokémon, since it's a Fire-Type. _

"You take fat and short," Ash yelled. "I got tall and skinny."

The two grunts growled in response to the insults. Samurai nodded and faced his opponent. Ash did the same.

Samurai's battle with the other grunt faded away as he focused on his own fight.

He decided to let the grunt take the first move.

"Houndour use Flamethrower! Flaaffy Thundershock!"

A stream of fire and electricity blasted towards Machop and Bulbasaur. They dodged the sloppy attacks easily, then quickly responded with their own attacks. A Karate Chop slammed into the Houndour and knocked it back, while a Vine Whip lashed the Flaaffy.

Both pokémon grunted out in pain.

"You shouldn't make the first move if you can't capitalize on it!" Ash taunted, unable to help himself from doing so.

"Shut up!" The grunt yelled, clearly frustrated. "Houndour use Bite on Bulbasaur, Flaaffy use Tackle on Machop!"

Ash considered his options. He knew that the Houndour was the biggest threat, since his Bulbasaur was weak to it. His Machop, however, was strong against it, and he decided to use that to his advantage.

"Bulbasaur! Ignore the Flaaffy and use Vine Whip at Houndour's legs! Machop use Karate Chop!"

Bulbasaur was knocked back by the Flaaffy's aggressive Tackle, but endured it, using Vine Whip at the Houndour's legs. It's attack hit true, causing the Houndour to stumble, missing its Bite attack. Machop was quick to punish it, sending a double Karate Chop attack with both arms into the dog pokémon, sending it crashing into a tree.

"Fuck!" The grunt yelled. "Houndour get the hell up! Flaaffy go help it!"

Flaaffy snarled but followed its command, charging at Machop from its blind side. Bulbasaur was quick to respond, intercepting it. The two pokémon wrestled back and forth, evenly matched, until the Flaaffy roared and bit into Bulbasaurs skin.

Bulbasaur yelled out in pain and was knocked back by Flaaffy's Thundershock.

Ash was surprised, considering the fact that Flaaffys cannot learn the move Bite; their teeth and bite strength are not strong enough. The Flaaffy snarled at Bulbasaur, its own blood leaking down its mouth. There was definitely something wrong with this pokémon.

Ash quickly looked to Machop who didn't look like he was in any trouble, and decided to focus on Bulbasaur. "Bulbasaur, stand your ground!" Ash yelled. Bulbasaur nodded and slammed its vines onto the ground, taunting the enemy Flaaffy.

The grunt was too confused, not knowing which of his pokémon to pay attention to, to make a command.

Flaaffy charged headfirst at Bulbasaur, without waiting for its master's to make a command.

Ash remembered this exact situation and grinned.

"Bulbasaur! You know what to do!"

Bulbasaur rolled to the side as a mist of purple replaced him. The Flaaffy ran straight into the powder and immediately fell down to the ground wheezing and coughing. Bulbasaur then slammed into it with a devastating Tackle attack that sent it flying, then lashed it with Vine Whip as it flew through the air, and finally slammed it with a barrage of leaves from Razor Leaf as it hit the ground. It collapsed immediately, utterly defeated by the combo.

"Nice work, Bulbasaur!" Ash exclaimed, as he checked on Machop. It had already finished the Houndour and had watched Bulbasaur's combo attack, impressed.

Ash grinned.

The tall grunt was at a complete loss of words. Never before in his career had he been so utterly thrashed.

"I win," Ash said, deadly serious. He looked to the side and saw that his friend was still struggling. He motioned with his hand and his partners ran to aid him. With the help of Ash's pokémon, Samurai was able to quickly defeat the other grunt's Raticate and Nidorino.

"It's over, " Ash said, his pokémon coming back to him. "Let's call the authorities." Samurai nodded at him, and their pokémon stood in a circle surrounding the men.

The two grunts put their hands up in defeat.

* * *

**And that's all for now! Thank you for reading. **


	3. Chapter 3: Back to Viridian

**Hey all! Here's Chapter 3. Hope you enjoy!**

* * *

The room was very dimly lit.

It was a rather plain-looking room. There were no decorations in it at all, only a black desk, a chair, and a small lamp. The walls were bare, and there were no windows in the room. Simply just a chair, a desk, and a lamp.

Behind the desk sat a man dressed in dark clothing. A cat-like pokémon rested its head on his lap, as he gently pet its head. Its beige color made it clear it was a Persian.

The cat meowed gently as he pet its ears.

They were abruptly interrupted by a knock on the door.

"Come in." His voice was dark and deep.

The door opened and two men dressed in dark clothing entered. One of them was tall and skinny, the other was short and plump. A third stood outside the door, nodded at the man who was sitting at the desk, then closed it.

The dark man snapped his finger, and immediately the Persian stood back up from his lap and trotted into a corner of the room, where it laid its head down and began to nap.

The man looked at the two who stood before him, his gaze almost scalding. They flinched when they felt his eyes on them.

He then broke the silence. "I gave you two a simple job. I gave you strong pokémon to complete that job. And here you stand before me, failures."

"Sir," the tall figure interrupted, "Please just let us expl—"

"No." The dark man cut him off, his voice oddly calm. "Did you tell the police officers anything? About me or about the operation?"

"No sir! We didn't tell them anything!" They both look terrified out of their minds.

He sighed. "You're lucky you were important to my plans. If you weren't I'd have just left you to rot in jail."

The two men visibly sighed in relief.

"Now you may talk. Tell me what happened."

The fat grunt began to speak. "So, we had spent the past couple days chopping down trees and capturing any bug pokemon we found in them like you wanted. They should be stored here already."

The dark man nodded his head.

The tall grunt then continued. "So we already told you what happened after. We managed to find the rare pokemon you wanted us to, but a Machop got in the way. After we tracked it down we found two trainers aiding it. They looked young and inexperienced so we thought we could take them, but they thrashed us!"

"Interesting…" he said. "Tell me about these two trainers."

"Well one of them was dressed like a samurai, which was odd. He battled pretty well, but it was the other trainer who was incredibly strong. I swear, boss, he looked like he couldn't have been a trainer for more than a week and the runt completely destroyed us!"

"I see. Tell me about this trainer. What did he look like?"

"Well, he looked like just a teenager. He couldn't have been more than 17," the tall figure said.

The shorter figure then began to speak, "He dressed pretty normally for a trainer I guess. But he had black hair that was really messy. Oh! And he wore this red baseball cap with a white circle on it."

"Now that is quite interesting." He began chuckling darkly.

His chuckling began to unnerve the two men in front of him.

"Oh it's nothing," he said, "I'm just thinking about something funny."

The two grunts looked at each other and then back at the man. "Okay, boss, so are we done here?"

The man chuckled darkly again, and then stood, revealing his tall, imposing figure. He snapped his fingers, and the Persian got up and trotted back towards her master.

"You see, gentlemen, I got you away from Officer Jenny because you had information that I could not allow to be leaked. But now here you are, failures, who have told me everything I need to know, and who no longer have any use to me."

He snapped his fingers. "So yes, we _are_ done here."

Persian began to stalk towards the men.

"Wait boss!" One of the grunts yelled. "I know we failed to capture the two rare pokémon, but we still caught a bunch of bug pokémon for you. Please, don't!"

He chuckled darkly before motioning with his hand to the feline. The two men screamed as Persian mauled into one of them, and raked its claws into the other. It made sure it got the job done, tearing through their throats with its claws. Their bodies lied limp near the door, as Persian walked back towards her master.

The darkly-dressed man sat back down and then whistled.

Immediately the door opened and another darkly-dressed man appeared.

"Clean up this mess."

"Right away, sir."

Another man appeared through the doorway and helped him drag the bodies out of the room. They managed to quickly get the bodies out, then shut the door.

Persian laid her head on her master's lap and sighed as he gently pet her behind the ears.

* * *

"Well, first of all I'd like to thank you both for your service to Viridian City," Officer Jenny said to Ash and Samurai, as they stood in one of the conference rooms of the Viridian Police Station. "I'd like to ask for your full names and for your pokedexes so we can scan them."

"My full name is Ashton Ketchum," he said as he handed her his pokedex. "And I'm Samurai," his friend said, as he did the same. Officer Jenny accepted the devices, but frowned. "That's not what it says here in our database," she said, holding a separate device in her hands. "Your pokedex does work as identification, but I would like to give me your full name just to be sure."

Ash raised his eyebrow in curiosity. Samurai sighed, "My name is Josh Bushi, but I don't really like to go by it."

"I see," Jenny replied, "I'm sorry to hear that, but with that you should be good." She handed them back their pokedexes. "Please follow me to our video room. You can ask me any questions you'd like in there."

The two trainers followed her into a larger room with a desk in the middle of it, surrounded by four chairs. On the desk were the two mysterious pokéballs they had managed to rescue, and directly across from it was a large screen.

"So," Ash said, taking a seat, "I think Josh is a pretty cool name." Ash said, trying to cheer up his friend who he could tell was torn.

"Thanks," Josh responded, awkwardly. "I'm fine if you call me that in private, but please don't say it out loud in public, okay? I really don't want other people to hear you call me that."

Ash nodded, wondering just what had happened to his friend that would cause him to fear his own name so much.

Jenny cleared her throat, and got the boys' attention.

"Well, young trainers, like I said earlier, we'd like to thank you for helping us in capturing these criminals. We have confirmed that they are the ones responsible for the deforestation in Viridian Forest and that they are the ones who poached the two pokémon you rescued." She said, running her hands along the pokéballs. "We also suspect them of illegally capturing the bug pokémon from the trees they chopped down, in violation of the Viridian Forest catching quotas for trainers."

"Are there any questions you two have?" She asked, finished with her explanation.

"I have one," Ash responded. "Who were the two criminals that Josh and I helped capture? What's going to happen to them?"

"Well, the names of those two criminals are irrelevant I'd say. As of right now they're being questioned by our city's gym leader, Giovanni, and after that they're going to be behind bars for quite a while."

"Okay, good," Ash replied, relieved.

Josh asked the next question. "What about these two pokéballs? Just what kind of pokémon are in here?"

"And that is why I brought you into this room," Jenny replied. "Right now Professor Oak of Pallet Town and Professor Sycamore of Lumiose City in Kalos are on the line for video chat." She grabbed the remote from the table and pressed a button. The screen turned on to reveal the faces of the two men she had mentioned. They both looked rather exhausted, but they were pokéman researchers after all.

"Hello there, Ash!" Oak exclaimed, "I see you've run into trouble already!"

Ash laughed nervously and scratched the back of his head.

"I'd like to first say that I heard from Jenny about what you had done, and I'm proud of you. Now about the problem with those pokéballs I see on the table, well, I'll let my colleague explain the situation to you."

The Kalosian man then spoke. He looked much younger than Professor Oak, and his voice was slightly accented. "Well, first off, why don't you two open those pokéballs."

Ash and Josh opened them and were surprised to see two bug-type pokémon appear. The first one was a small blue bug with a horn on its head in the shape of a "C". The other was a small snail pokémon inside of a gray shell.

"The blue pokémon is a Karrablast and the other is known as a Shelmet. These two pokémon are native to Unova and I have been studying them lately because of their unique method of evolution. You see when these two have gained enough experience in the world and have grown strong to a certain degree, upon contact with one another they will both evolve."

"Do you know what they will evolve into?" Ash asked, curious. He watched the two pokémon as they stared at the area around them in curiosity.

"I do. Professor Juniper of Unova has already done rather extensive research on this, and has confirmed that Karrablast will evolve into Escavalier, a strong and sturdy warrior, whereas Shelmet will evolve into Accelgor, a speed-type pokémon."

"That's really cool!" Ash said, as he released Machop out of its pokéball. The two bug pokémon recognized it immediately and began to play with it. It chased them around the room playfully as the conversation continued.

"How did they end up in the Viridian Forest?" Josh asked.

"That would be my fault." Sycamore responded. "I flew down to Kanto just last week with those two pokémon to conduct research. I was trying to study the effects of different environments on their evolution."

Ash and Josh nodded, following along.

"But being my clumsy self, I accidently lost them in the forest… And of course I panicked! These two pokémon are exceptionally rare! But I had prior arrangements back in Kalos and I could not find them in time so I had to fly back. I asked Professor Oak if he could assist me, and I assume you asked the Gym Leader of the nearest city for assistance?"

Oak nodded. "That's quite right. I asked the Viridian Gym Leader to aid in the search of these two pokémon. I assume word must have been leaked somehow, which is how those poachers heard about them."

"But Professor Sycamore," Ash interjected, "Weren't you at all scared for the well-being of the pokémon. I mean, what if they had been eaten by some predator?"

"That's a valid question, Ash. But those pokémon had been trained to hide in situations such as this one. And well, all I could really do was hope they were alive." Sycamore scratched the back of his neck in embarrassment. "I was planning on flying down today with my schedule cleared so I could find them, but I see you have already done that for me. For that, I thank you."

"So what happens now?" Josh asked.

"Well, that depends on you," Sycamore responded, cryptically.

"What do you mean?" Ash said, confused.

"Well, you see, my main focus of study is Mega Evolution and the factors that can affect this. That is why I also study regular evolution as well. The goal of my research with Karrablast and Shelmet was to see the effects of living in a different environment than Unova on their evolution." Sycamore cleared his throat and then continued. "And here I am with two talented trainers who managed to find and protect them from poachers. Who would make better candidates to help me with this research than you?"

"So you want us to raise these two pokémon for you?" Ash asked.

"Well close." Sycamore replied. "I want to give them to you."

Josh gasped in surprise. "But, Professor! These pokémon are so rare!"

Sycamore chuckled. "I understand that. But it's not as if I would get nothing in return. All I ask is that when they are ready to evolve, you bring them to me, in Lumiose City, so I may do some research. I want to be able to witness their evolution in my lab so that I can study any differences they might have. It should only take a few days, and you'll have a few days to explore the city. My lab would fund the cost of your trip as well, of course."

"How will we know when they're ready to evolve?"

"Good question." At this point, Machop and the two bug types sat on the floor in front of the screen, listening closely to the professor. "In the state they are now, these two are mere babies. They are very far from evolution, and you will have to work hard to train them. I would not recommend using them for battle whatsoever until you have trained them sufficiently. And if you want to know when they are ready to evolve, all you need to do is ask them!"

"This is amazing!" Josh said, "As a bug lover I've always wanted to have one of these pokémon on my team! They are some of the strongest bug-types out there!"

Professor Sycamore chuckled. "I appreciate your enthusiasm. All I ask is that you raise them well and bring them to me when they're ready to evolve. Judging from your actions I'm sure you'll train them well, better than I could; after all, I'm the one who lost them! And believe me it might seem odd, but all you need to do is ask them when they're ready to evolve. They'll know."

Ash nodded at him, then looked at Josh with a grin. "So, Samurai, which pokémon do you want?" The two bug-types looked up, curious as to who would become their new trainer.

Josh grinned and pointed at Karrablast. "Escavalier is both a sturdy defender and a hard hitter, so I definitely want Karrablast!" The Karrablast nodded excitedly.

Ash chuckled. "We're on the same page then, because I want Shelmet! Accelgor would be an awesome addition to my team." The Shelmet flopped up and down in excitement.

"Well, if that's all," Sycamore said, as if he was in a hurry to go do something, "I'll leave my contact information here with Jenny for you, and with that I'll have to go. Thank you!"

And with that his face disappeared from the screen.

Professor Oak chuckled. "Oh Sycamore, always in a hurry and always forgetting things. To be young again."

Ash gently pet Shelmet and introduced it to the rest of his team. Josh did the same.

"Well, Ash," Oak said, getting both of their attention, "I'll have to leave you now as well. Do remember to call your mother!" He turned to Josh this time, "And young man, remember to train that Karrablast well; it will become a monster in battle!"

Josh nodded, and Oak's face disappeared from the screen as well.

"Well," Jenny said. "All that is left to do is to help you register those pokémon as your own. If you have your own pokéballs we can switch them from those black market balls and transfer their ownership to you."

Ash and Josh both nodded, and followed Jenny to another room. After they finished with the necessary procedure she walked them out of the station.

They thanked Jenny and turned to leave when she called them back.

"One more thing, boys. The two poachers you managed to capture may be a part of a larger organization that has been causing trouble in the Kanto and Johto regions. The Police Forces across both the Kanto and Johto regions are on high alert. Although nothing has been confirmed about them, I want to give you a formal warning before you continue your journey about this organization and their suspected name—Rocket."

* * *

Ash and Josh lounged on the comfortable couches of the Viridian Pokémon Center. Their pokémon were with Nurse Joy and they sat idly, discussing their plans.

"Are you sure I can't change your mind?" Josh said, giving Ash a sad look.

"Yeah, I have to catch up to the other Pallet Town trainers! I'm going to leave tomorrow at first light."

Josh nodded. "Well I'm going to stick around here a little longer and train my Karrablast in the forest. Can't you wait just a day longer so I can finish my business in Viridian, then I could accompany you at least until we reach the Viridian Forest?"

Ash shook his head. "I'm sorry. I can't afford to lose even a day if I want to catch up to Gary."

Samurai nodded in defeat. "Well then, at least we can hang out for the rest of today. It's still afternoon after all. Let's train together?"

"Sure, I'd like that." Ash grinned.

They took their healed pokémon and headed for a nearby training ground. As they walked they discussed various topics and training techniques. When they arrived they saw a decent amount of trainers training their pokémon or battling, but there were still many battlefields open. Ash was in utter awe of all the powerful pokémon he saw nearby them. He saw a large Nidoking collide against a Lairon as they fought. He saw an Ursaring roar as it beat its arms against its chest.

Josh snapped him out of it and they released all of their pokémon. "Okay, guys. We're going to do some training. Bulbasaur, why don't you head over and work with Josh and his team. Machop, I want to work with you since we haven't done any formal training yet! Shelmet, stay right there and watch what I do with Machop."

Bulbasaur nodded and headed over to Josh's side of the battlefield. It then began a mock battle with Josh's Heracross. Machop pumped its chest excited and Shelmet stood to the side, curious. "Okay, Machop. It looks like the moves you know are Karate Chop and Low Kick. Although you don't have a high move count like Bulbasaur, I know your individual skill with your moves is very strong!"

Machop nodded, excitedly.

"Okay, so what I want you to do is use Karate Chop and Low Kick in that order."

It nodded and did so, unleashing a powerful blow with its right arm followed by a kick from its leg. The timing between the attacks however was off. It was like it was using two separate moves, instead of chaining moves together like Bulbasaur had.

It growled in frustration.

"Don't worry, Machop! I worked with Bulbasaur on this earlier. Keep practicing, and you'll get it!"

Machop nodded, determined.

As Machop continued to practice using its moves sequentially, Ash turned to Shelmet. "So, Shelmet, do you want to train too?"

Shelmet jumped up and down, shouting in excitement.

Ash nodded and reached for his pokedex. "Okay, so it looks like the moves you know right now are Acid and Leech Life. Can you show me them?"

It did so, and Ash trained his pokémon for a couple more hours, until it was almost evening. Machop got better at utilizing multiple moves in succession, and Bulbasaur honed its already trained skills. Shelmet was proving to be very difficult to train, but it was an investment Ash was more than willing to make.

"That was a good training session, don't you guys think?" Machop, Shelmet, and Bulbasaur, who had come back for individual training at this point, all shouted their agreement at him.

"'Saur!"

"Machop!"

"Shelmet! Shel!"

Ash smiled and pet all of his pokémon, then looked to Josh's side of the training field. There were two other trainers there in front of Josh, and from the shouting Ash could hear it seemed they were harassing him. "Come on guys, let's go see what's going on." His pokémon nodded and followed him.

"What the hell is with the Samurai costume, bro? Are you one of those cosplay geeks?" The two trainers laughed to themselves, at Josh's expense, who Ash could also see was getting red in embarrassment.

Josh looked like he badly wanted to speak, but he couldn't get the words out.

"Come on! Got nothing to say? Are you retarded? Is that why you're in this stupid costume!?" His friend began to chuckle even louder.

Ash looked at the two trainers. They were both rather tall, taller than him and Josh. The taller of the two had brown hair, slicked back by way too much hair gel, and his friend, the shorter one, had shorter blond hair. They definitely looked like experienced trainers, or at least like they had been trainers for longer than a week, unlike Ash…

But Ash never let fear stop him from doing what was right. "Hey guys!" He yelled, getting their attention. All three trainers looked at him. Josh seemed slightly relieved.

"How about we talk less, and let our actions speak instead of our words? You seem to like making fun of my friend; why not settle this with a battle instead?" Ash said, a gleam in his eyes.

The two trainers grinned viciously to each other. "That sounds like a good idea," the taller one said to the shorter one. They began to reach for their pokédexes. "I'm always willing to make money."

They then began to tap buttons into their pokédex, to register a battle. Josh did the same. Upon watching, Ash realized the mistake he had made with Trent, the red-haired trainer Paul had saved him from. Although it was not required to register a trainer battle with the League, it gave credibility, and ensured the victors would receive the monetary reward from the battle.

Ash realized he should have never accepted the battle against Trent when the red-haired asshole had not registered the battle at all. It had completely slipped Ash's mind to ask him to do so, as well. He wanted to beat himself up for being so stupid, just a few days ago, in the same exact location he was in now. Ash brushed away those thoughts and pulled out his pokédex.

"How does a double battle sound?" Ash asked. "It'll be a two-on-two, and each of us will put in 250 pokédollars. The winning team will walk away with 1000 pokédollars."

The two trainers looked at each other, then nodded to Ash. They looked gleefully delighted, like predators stalking their prey.

Ash looked to Josh. He put his hand on the shorter boy's shoulder. "Are you good with this?" Josh nodded, with a more determined look in his eyes. "Let's do this."

Ash's pokémon stood behind him looking excited.

"Sorry Machop, but I'm going to go with Bulbasaur for this battle. You've been working really hard and I promise I'll use you for a battle soon, but right now I want to work with Bulbasaur." Machop nodded to him as Bulbasaur moved to stand in front of Ash. The two pokémon nodded to each other as Bulbasaur walked past it. Shelmet leaned against Machop, excited to watch the battle.

Ash and Josh stood together on one side of the battle field, while the other two trainers stood on the opposite side. Skorupi appeared in a flash of light in front of Josh, and Bulbasaur ran up and stood in front of Ash.

On the opposing side, a medium-sized Wartortle appeared across from Bulbasaur and a Ponyta materialized across from Skorupi.

_Shit! A fire-type. We're both going to be weak against it._

As if knowing this, the enemy Ponyta charged at a rapid speed towards Bulbasaur and Skorupi, then unleashed an Ember attack at them. A torrent of flames filled the area they had been standing in; they'd barely managed to dodge out of the way. The Wartortle then charged at them, accidently bumping into its ally, but continuing on its path. It landed a devastating Tackle onto Bulbasaur as the Ponyta charged and rammed into Skorupi with a Tackle attack as well.

Bulbasaur tried to respond with a Vine Whip at the Wartortle but it was easily dodged.

"Bulbasaur, use Vine Whip on Wartortle again!"

"Skorupi, use Poison Sting on Ponyta!"

Ash and Josh tried their best to hold their enemies off, but their individual power was too strong. The enemy pokémon either dodged or simply shrugged off their attacks.

Skorupi was sent flying back by the Wartortle's Water Gun. Ash tried to respond by commanding Bulbasaur to use Razor Leaf, but it easily dodged the projectiles.

"What's the matter? You guys can't keep up?" The brown-haired trainer taunted.

Bulbasaur was sent flying back by another powerful Tackle from the Wartortle, and Skorupi was forced to retreat as the opposing pokémon pushed them even further back. Ash realized he needed to think of something fast.

_They're using the type advantage of their Ponyta as a threat to push us back. I've been trying to do the same with Bulbasaur against Wartortle, but it keeps dodging! _

Upon seeing the Wartortle bump into its ally Ponyta again, Ash realized something else..

_These pokémon are definitely super strong, but they don't seem to be working together at all. They keep bumping into each other and just using brute force to push us back. They aren't coordinating their attacks at all, even though this is a doubles battle. Wait a minute… neither have we…._

"Samurai!" Ash yelled. "Do you remember Viridian Forest, against the Beedrill?"

Josh nodded, realizing Ash's plan.

"Bulbasaur, use Razor Leaf!"

"Skorupi, use Pin Missile!"

The opposing Ponyta and Wartortle were sent flying back for the first time in the battle, as razor sharp leaves and missiles bombarded them from the sky.

"Dammit, get back up and use Ember!" Yelled the brown-haired trainer.

"Wartortle, get up and use Water Gun!" The blond trainer exclaimed.

The two pokémon got up and used their attacks, but were surprised by the steam that filled the air as their attacks crossed paths in mid-air and cancelled each other out.

"What are you doing, man!?" The blond yelled.

"What do you mean!? I told my Ponyta to use Ember before you made a command!"

The trainers' eyes momentarily left the battlefield as they argued.

_This is our chance!_

"Follow my lead!" Ash exclaimed to Josh who nodded. "Bulbasaur, use Razor Leaf and aim only at the Wartortle!"

Bulbasaur released another hail of razor sharp projectiles at the turtle pokémon, as Skorupi began to do the same with its Pin Missile. Wartortle managed to dodge most of the Razor Leaf, but when Pin Missile began to reinforce it it became unable to dodge as effectively.

It cried out in pain as it was bombarded by the two attacks, which drew the attention of its trainer.

"Shit! Dude let's just focus on the battle." The blond yelled as he shouted at his pokémon to get up.

Skorupi continued its Pin Missile attack on the Wartortle as Ash commanded Bulbasaur to charge towards the Wartortle.

"Ponyta, get that Skorupi while it's busy using Pin Missile!"

"No! What are you doing?! Help Wartortle!" The blond yelled. But the command had already been made and Ponyta charged at Skorupi, passing Bulbasaur who charged at the winded Wartortle.

"Bulbasaur you need to take him out quickly!" Ash commanded.

"Skorupi, aim Pin Missile at Ponyta now!" Josh yelled. The hail of projectiles changed direction as it began to significantly slow the advancing Ponyta.

Bulbasaur reached the Wartortle first. Its trainer commanded it to use Water Gun, but Bulbasaur continued its charge, shrugging off the ineffective move. It was slowed down, but still continued to move forwards. The Wartortle grew tired and was forced to stop, giving Bulbasaur its chance.

"You know what to do!" Ash exclaimed, as Bulbasaur wrapped its vines around the injured Wartortle and reeled it in as it used Tackle, amplifying the effect of the move and sending it flying backwards. Bulbasaur then jumped and slammed its vines into the Wartortle as it fell, then ended it with a barrage of Razor Leaf. The Wartortle could not withstand the barrage of super-effective attacks, and fell.

"Wartortle, no!" The blond yelled.

Ash sighed in relief.

_I'm glad I taught Bulbasaur those combos!_

He then looked back to Skorupi, who became too tired to continue its Pin Missile attack. The Ponyta began to close the distance.

"Bulbasaur! Help Skorupi! Razor Leaf!"

"Ponyta, use Ember! You need to take it out quickly!"

Ponyta growled as it released flames towards the tired Skorupi. Skorupi managed to roll slightly out of the way of the attack, but was still badly burned. The Ponyta tried to use another Ember attack, but its attack was thrown off as a barrage of leaves pelted into its back. Ponyta turned around and growled, facing the charging Bulbasaur, but grunted out in pain as Skorupi unleashed a Poison Sting against its back.

It turned its back again, to take out the downed Skorupi with Ember, only to get lashed in the back by a powerful Vine Whip, pierced in the front by another Poison Sting, then knocked down to the ground by Bulbasaur's Tackle. It fell to the ground, unconscious.

The enemy trainers returned their pokémon, stunned.

.

Bulbasaur walked back towards its trainer, carrying the injured Skorupi in its vines. It placed it down in front of Josh, who began to apply a potion.

"You did great out there!" Ash exclaimed, Machop and Shelmet shouting in agreement. Bulbasaur grinned with pride.

The two trainers began to approach. Ash expected them to hurl more insults, but was surprised when they offered their hands to shake.

"We underestimated you guys." They said as Ash shook their hands.

They then turned to Josh. "You may dress funny, but you sure know how to battle."

Josh nodded and shook their hands as well.

"The money you guys won should be transferred to you now." Ash nodded as he saw the proper notification appear on his pokédex.

The two trainers waved at them and left, heading for the Pokémon Center.

Ash and Josh fistbumped. "Your strategy was great, Ash! You led us to the win!"

"Thanks," Ash grinned, "But it would've failed if Skorupi hadn't been able to hold out for so long. You guys deserve credit too."

He pet the scorpion gingerly, as it was still recovering.

"Let's head back to the Pokémon Center." Ash said, returning his pokémon. Josh nodded and did the same.

As they made their way into the relatively busy Pokémon Center, Ash looked down at his pokédex which had buzzed.

He had received another notification, a message from Officer Jenny.

**Ash, before you leave tomorrow morning, please head to the Viridian Gym. The Gym Leader, Giovanni, would like to have a word with you, to thank you personally before you go off to continue your journey.**


End file.
